The Moss-Free Stone

Ewan McIntosh posted a link to a great list of The Top 100 Lamest Excuses for Not Innovating to his Del.icio.us account today. A few particularly relevant ones to those of us in education (some with commentary):

• I don’t have the time.
• I’ll be punished if I fail. (Education translation: If my kids fail I’ll be punished.)
• My home life will suffer. (Read a blog? Lost is on tonight!)
• If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. (Might want to define “ain’t broke.”)
• Now is not a good time to start a new project. (When, exactly would be a better time?)
• Been there, done that.
• I’ve never done anything like this before. (Or, I’ve always done it my way, and it has worked fine.)
• We need more data.
• Summer’s coming. (In the fall, it won’t work either, because I’ve got tests to prepare for.)
• I’m not sure how to begin.
• We need to focus on the short term for a while. (Or, they can try that next year.)
• What we really need are some cost cutting initiatives. (We’ll be cutting down on the training and tech budget.)
• Maybe next year. (Too bad the real-world can’t and doesn’t wait to change.)

Innovation is not easy, and it does not happen overnight. However, it is all to easy to cling to the status quo in the name of accountability and familiarity. What makes innovation vital to educators, however, is the fact that our students will enter a world vastly different from the one we entered decades ago (for those of us old enough). When we can put our excuses aside, we can not only better prepare our students, but we can also revitalize our careers, as long as the change undertaken is seen as meaningful and challenging. Regardless of the difficulties, we owe it to our children to venture beyond our comfort zones.